Courageous Dedication to the Long Haul

Patience, You Must Have

I’m learning patience.

Patience to not rush ahead. Patience to embrace slowness.

Now for those like me who move at the speed of light, I would encourage you to hear the words of Sharon Salzberg, that patience is not something where we must grit our teeth and bear it.

Instead, patience is something that, if we can welcome it, clears the fog in our muddled minds, and we can finally see the beauty and the wonder and the majesty all around us.

“Having patience doesn't mean making a pact with the devil of denial, ignoring our emotions and aspirations,” says Sharon. “It means being wholeheartedly engaged in the process that's unfolding, rather than yanking up our carrots, ripping open a budding flower, demanding a caterpillar hurry up and get that chrysalis stage over with.”

What if instead of living a life of chaotic completion, ticking off half-hearted to-dos, and forcing quick results, we embraced what Sharon calls the “courageous dedication to the long haul.” We wait, not without action (“patience doesn't mean inertia or complacence”), but with a strength of mind and character to lean into the feeling of tension, knowing it will lead us to an emergence of newness like the butterfly emerging from its prison cell.

“Whenever we're pushing against what is, as though if we tried hard enough, we could force the tempo of change, we can take a breath. Whatever our vision for how things should be in the future, we can make sure we do the very next thing we need to do today.”

So, what does patience mean for you today?

Thanks for reading,